What Is Dependency Court:
Dependency Court involves boys and girls under the age of 18 who have been physically, emotionally, or sexually abused and/or,
who have been neglected or abandoned, and thus need the protection of the Superior Court. Juvenile Court Dependency Proceedings
include, but are not limited to the following hearings:
• Arraignment and Detention Hearing
• Pre-release Investigation Hearing
• Pre-trial Resolution Conference Hearing
• Mediation
• Adjudication (Trial)
• Disposition Hearing
• Six-month Status Review Hearing
• Twelve-month Status Review Hearing
• Eighteen-month Planning Hearing
• Selection and Implementation Hearing
• Guardianship Hearing
• Adoption Hearing
Jurisdictions throughout the United States have procedures that best serve the families within each jurisdiction and
thus, the procedures are not uniform throughout the United States. It is the goal of CCK to guide each jurisdiction in
providing the emotional comfort and support created by the Teddy Bear Program that best fits the needs of
that particular jurisdiction.
Child Abuse and the Legal System, by Inger J. Sagatun and Leonard P. Edwards
Chicago: Nelson-Hall., 1995
Somebody Else's Children, by John Hubner & Jill Wolfson
New York: Crown Publishers., 1996